Fir was in a lot of pain, blood dripping from her nose and head, but she was not completely defeated. After all that she still felt she could fight. Trembling from the effort, Fir pressed her palms against the concrete to stand up. However, at that moment Erica fell on top of her from the same height. The blow crushed her abdomen and knocked her completely off her feet.

Erica got off Fir after checking that she had knocked her unconscious. Then she looked around: most of the guards were strewn across the floor, incapacitated. Pieces of firearms spanned a vast terrain, while Liliana and Arturo fought with Sikika, the last bodyguard standing. The mage had one knee on the ground, exhausted. Liliana was in front of him, though she was only holding Brontes with one arm, the other dangling as if it hurt like hell. In front of them, Sikika was barely holding on with one arm and leg asleep. However, as she turned and saw her protégé being defeated, her priorities changed. She crawled slowly and painfully toward Fir, her eyes watery. Erica stepped back to give her some space.

That ended the fight, at least for the moment. The brika turned to her friends to confirm that they were okay, but seeing them without serious injuries, she stopped midway. She wondered what would come next.

—Lili?— Erica called out to her in the distance.

Liliana turned to her. Erica tensed, unsure. She knew the nonis had arrested her the moment they parted, but she wasn't sure of her feelings. Meanwhile, Liliana sensed the brika's fear, the defenses she was beginning to put up between them. She knew she had to act fast, so she went to her, met her halfway and hugged her tightly.

—I'm sorry I left you alone, I never meant to!

Erica looked at her in silence. Nervously, she took her by the shoulders and gently pushed her away.

—Eh... it's okay...— she wanted to say, but a lump formed in her throat— it's okay if you don't want to travel with me... you don't owe me anything, you can defend yourself....

She wanted to say more, but a pout closed her lips. Her eyes became watery.

—No, Erica, stop saying such things!— begged Liliana — You are important to me!

But the brika took a step back and clutched one arm, closing herself. She wiped her tears with a sleeve and flashed her a sad smile. Liliana's words were a sweet gift that washed her heart. She longed for a person to see her like this, but she knew that at any moment she could hurt her or Arturo and their friendship would turn into a tragedy. She couldn't bear the thought of either of them hating her, any day they spent together was a risk towards such an inevitable nightmare. With that in mind, she made her decision: she would leave at that moment. Their friendship would be preserved as one of their most precious memories, nothing more.

—It will be better if we leave it at that— she said— you are also important to me, that's why we have to separate.

She took another step back.

—Erica, what are you doing? Nothing is stopping us from being together!— she pleaded— Tell me what the problem is!

Erica opened her mouth to say goodbye, but then Arturo caught up with them, exhausted as he was.

—It's because of your strength, isn't it?— he pleaded.

Liliana turned to him, inquisitive.

—What do you mean?

—Someone so strong must have caused several problems in Mother: broken bones, dismemberments, deaths. I find it unlikely that in 18 years she hasn't caused any commotion.

Liliana turned to Erica, surprised.

—What are you talking about?! Erica is not a... serial killer or something! There's no way she would have taken such advantage of her strength!

—No, not taken advantage of— corrected Arturo— How can I explain it? Do you remember a time when we were thirteen? I was stretching, you passed by me without noticing and I hit you in the nose without meaning to.

—Yes, I think I remember that— she said, not very sure.

—Imagine that with Erica's strength. She would have fractured your whole skull, I'm sure she would have caused an internal hemorrhage and you would have died in a few minutes. The same thing happened to her for 18 years, didn't it, Erica?

She sighed and raised her hands as if a gun was pointed at her.

—I got caught. It's true, I've killed a lot of people, a lot more than I can remember... that's why I wanted to leave. If we stay together, sooner or later... sooner or later one of you will die.

Erica took another step back. Liliana took a step forward, with no arguments to dissuade her, but with the desire overflowing out of her ears.

—You won't kill me! You would never do it! I trust you!

—I'd never do it on purpose! I never meant to, but I did it anyway! I can't risk you too!

Without waiting for a good idea to come to them to dissuade her, Erica turned and ran at full speed, only to run face first into a wall.

She fell flat on her back, stopped for a moment, looked ahead. In front of her was a six-foot-wide block of concrete and dirt that hadn't been there a second ago. Puzzled, she looked back. Arturo grabbed Liliana's shoulders.

—You're wrong— he said— the medicine in Nudo far surpasses what we had in Mother. The risk of being with you is minimal, you have no reason to leave us, as long as you actually want to be our friend.

Liliana's face lit up with that hope.

—Do you see, Erica?!

Erica stood up.

—Even so, if I were to hit you two by accident, it would hurt a lot, you've already lived it!

—I know— Liliana answered— even so.

Erica pouted.

—But... What if there are no doctors around?

—We'll bring potions— Arturo assured her.

—But... but I don't want to hurt you— she shrieked on the verge of tears.

—Then don't go!— begged Liliana.

Erica could not stand it any longer and returned with them to hold them in a tight embrace. Liliana reciprocated, while Arturo did what he could with the little energy he had left.

—Let's go, the three of us— said Erica.

—Yes— they both answered.

Erica took Arturo in her arms and they left for the exit. However, at that moment a large ship descended from the sky and fired a powerful laser in front of them as a warning.

—Stop, you damned humas!— demanded a young voice from the ship's speakers.

Erica thought about jumping and destroying the ship from inside, but there was a chance that her friends would be shot or that the ship would fall on them. Arturo was in no condition to lift something so heavy. She needed another strategy.

—Who are you?— Liliana pleaded, bringing her hand close to her chest.

—That doesn't matter— claimed the voice in the ship— you have something that belongs to me.

Liliana and Erica looked at each other, displeased.

—Cilo?!— they recognized him.

Tur'non's youngest son and Fir's brother. The same cocky noni boy who had attacked them in the grotto where they had found Brontes. His voice sounded a little different coming out of the speakers, but it was definitely his.

—You wretched bastard!— growled Erica.

—Cilo, if you kill me, Brontes will rebuild his shakma right here— Liliana explained— He'll devour the souls of everyone around! Don't you care about the lives of these nonis?!

—It's better this way. If the shakma is reconstituted, I can go in and take the munima for myself.

Erica realized that the lesser crivia had no regard for the lives of his subjects. She looked around for something that could help them and found Fir.

—Aha!

—You have an idea?— Liliana muttered next to her.

Arturo paid attention.

—Yes, I'll have to leave you for a second— said Erica— Can you protect yourselves?

The mage and the anchor nodded. The brika replied with the same gesture, turned around and ran toward Fir.

—I said don't move!— ordered a furious Cilo.

The ship fired missiles at Erica, but she dodged them with leaps and pirouettes, grabbed Fir in flight and clutched her to her chest. Then he pressed a timitio dagger against her neck.

—Careful, Cilo!— she warned— One more shot and you'll have no sister!

Sikika crawled toward her from where she stood.

—Silly girl! If you kill her, the same thing will happen as if we kill your friend; her munima will absorb all the souls around her and form a shakma. There is no reason to take her life.

Erica gritted her teeth. She hadn't thought of that. However, at that moment all she cared about were the lives of her friends; whether they died from laser shots or from Fir's shakma was all the same.

—How dare you threaten a nobleman's life for the second time?!

Fir began to cough. She tried to pull away, but Erica held her tightly. The crivia regained consciousness, looked in all directions and noticed the knife at her neck.

—What's going on?

—Your brother is threatening my friends with that ship, so I'm holding you hostage— Erica explained, —Stay still or I'll kill you. I wouldn't mind doing it. The same if you try to get out of it or use your munimas.

Fir looked at the ship.

—Cilo?— she called to him in the distance.

—Fir'non, stay there, I swear I'll kill these humas in a second— he said nervously.

—Hey, Erica, if you kill me, my munimas....

—I know, they already explained it to me— the brika cut her off— the same if your asshole brother kills Lili.

—Yes, I suppose so— then she raised her voice so that the other crivia could hear her— Cilo, be careful! Don't kill Liliana until you're far away!

—I can't shoot the brika if she's holding you hostage— Cilo demanded.

—Yes, that would be a problem— Fir sighed— What's your plan, you crooks? Are you planning to drag me with you to your hideout? Are you going to take me to the city limits or to a ship you have ready? Whatever you do, kidnapping me is a tremendous crime, you know? Even if you managed to hold me for that long, which you won't, the empire's militia will track you down and kill you easily, no matter where you are in the world.

—And what do you expect us to do?— pleaded Erica— This is all your stupid brother's fault anyway!

—Cilo's fault? You're the ones who took his munima away from him!— Fir protested.

—It was unintentional!— said Erica.

—Yes, well, how would we know? On top of that, you hurt him.

—He attacked us!

Liliana gave it another thought. Arturo looked at her.

—What do you have in mind?— he asked.

—I think... I think I know what I should do— she said.

She immediately turned and started walking towards Fir.

—Aim!— Cilo ordered.

—Don't even think about it, you fucking asshole!— Erica shouted, as she pressed the dagger a little harder against Fir's neck.

Liliana turned to the ship for a moment.

—Cilo, you're not a baby anymore— she challenged him firmly— you should start taking responsibility for your actions and realize that not everyone will do whatever you want.

She continued on her way to Fir, while Cilo raged.

—Who do you think you are?! You don't know me, you impertinent huma! Ungrar, shoot her! Open fire!

—Ungrar, ignore my brother— Fir ordered him.

—You can't do that!— protested Cilo— Ungrar, shoot them all!

—I'm sorry, my lord, but I have special instructions to obey Fir'non's orders over yours— the veteran's voice was heard from the ship's speakers.

—What?! Who told you that?!

—Your father, Tur'non, my lord.

While Cilo was throwing a tantrum, Liliana approached Fir.

—I think there was a misunderstanding— she said— It's not like we stole Brontes off him. Do you think your brother would have convinced him to anchor himself to his body?

Fir looked at her with surprise.

—What are you talking about? Of course he would have!

—When we talked in the visiting room, you saw him for a moment. Did Brontes tell you that he would have accepted Cilo?

Fir pursed her lips for a moment, displeased. Then she looked elsewhere.

—He just told me to leave— she said— I couldn't talk to your munima.

—Why don't you ask him now? Because the way I see it, your brother would have died in that shakma— Liliana said.

—Hey, hey. Cilo is still a spoiled child, but he has aptitude, you know?— his sister defended him— I think he would have made it.

—All right, let's ask Brontes— said Liliana— Brontes, please tell Fir the truth, what do you think?

The crivia looked at Liliana's chest, then at her.

—All right— she finally agreed.

—Erica, could you release her?— Liliana asked.

The brika did as she was told. Sikika stood up tensed, ready to jump towards them. Erica prepared to receive her, but then Fir indicated to her bodyguard with a hand gesture that violence would not be necessary at that moment.

—We'll do it their way— she said— They've earned it.

Sikika leaned against the wall beside her, Erica relaxed. Fir raised both hands, each with half a black star on the back.

—Ready?— she asked Liliana.

—Go ahead.

Fir brought both hands to Liliana's chest. The three marks came into contact.

The space around them faded into the background. Suddenly they were in a dark veil. Liliana noticed that next to Fir stood two tall, muscular, hyperactive nonis. They moved constantly, energetically and vigorously, their faces disfigured in a constant expression somewhere between elation and anger.

—Meet Zack and Set, the war brothers— said Fir.

—Nice to meet you— greeted Liliana.

Both nonis made bodybuilder poses and barked like wild animals. Liliana didn't know how to interpret that, but she realized that they wouldn't try to attack her as long as Fir was there. Then she looked to her side: Brontes had his adult form, with slight wrinkles on his forehead and some gray in his hair. He would be in his fifties. Liliana noticed that she had never seen him so old, she wondered if he had done it on purpose or if his appearance depended on factors he couldn't control. Then she returned her gaze to Fir.

—How can we both be here together?— she asked.

—When you touch another anchor's mark, you can talk to its munima— she explained— Logically, if you join the two marks, both anchors can talk to each other's munima. But we're not here to talk about anchor theory.

The crivia looked at Brontes, who stood with his arms crossed and a face of few friends.

—What do you think of my brother?— she asked.

—A spoiled brat. Where I come from, we would have left him in the jungle to learn humility— said Brontes.

The war brothers behind Fir locked horns.

—But what kind of challenges would he have faced in your shakma? I'm sure he would have overcome any problem you threw at him— Fir argued.

—Anything? How about death?

—Come on, it's not that easy to kill a crivia!

—You talk about your brother as if he wasn't a spoiled child— Brontes spat at her— What would I have done? I would have tricked him into going inside my shakma, while his warriors entertained themselves with my beast form outside. From that point I would have tormented him bit by bit, increasing the fear by the minute. I would have thrown non-existent monsters at him, dismembered him, and kept him dying for days to savor his soul to the fullest. That's the treatment I gave to the most arrogant ones who entered my dominion.

Fir frowned, unsure.

—But... But Cilo can stand up for himself! He's... progressing...

—Defend himself? From me?— alleged Brontes— young noni, you fought with that brute Erica, didn't you? On top of that you lost. Liliana, tell me, how long did it take me to defeat Erica?

Liliana remembered.

—About ten seconds, at most— she recalled.

—You're giving her too much credit, I think it was half of it— said Brontes.

—It's possible.

Fir bowed her head in defeat. Brontes growled.

—Face reality, you deluded crivia. Your brother was lucky Liliana found me first.

Fir nodded, mute. Then the veil vanished and brought them back to reality. The bodies of the munimas disappeared, since they had always been in their heads. Fir sighed. She looked very different from the imposing girl of the day before. She put a hand to her head.

—I'm so sorry, I can't believe my brother put you through all that when you really did him a favor— she snapped— and on top of that there's what I did, I'm such a fool!

Sikika limped up to them.

Fir looked up at the purple sky. It was noon. She took a deep breath for a moment, then turned to her bodyguard.

—Sikika, everyone, get some rest. These three humans are now my guests. Let no one harm them.

The noni nodded and slowly walked away towards her companions in an attempt to wake them. Fir then walked around Liliana to approach her brother's ship.

—Cilo, come down right now— she ordered— We need to talk!

—What... What happened?— he pleaded— How did they trick you, Fir'non?! Don't tell me you trust these stupid humans now!

—Cilo, don't make me come looking for you. I won't say it again. Come down this instant!

For several seconds there was no answer. Then the ship began to turn around.

—Ungrar, land that piece of junk and bring my brother to me right now!— Fir ordered.

The ship wobbled back and forth, Ungrar's deep voice and Cilo's high-pitched voice could be heard arguing away from the microphone. Finally Cilo squealed, the ship landed and out of it appeared Ungrar carrying his little protégé on one shoulder. As Fir ordered, the bodyguard carried the young crivia to his sister and laid him on the ground to face her alone. Cilo looked up at Fir, intimidated.

—Hey, Cilo, I talked to the munima you loved so much— Fir spat at him— he told me that if it weren't for the humans you hate so much, he would have devoured your soul, don't you have something to tell them?

The young crivia looked at Erica and Liliana and frowned. Then Fir punched him on the head.

—Ouch!

—Behave like a decent crivia!— Fir reprimanded him — From the way you described your encounter with them, it sounded like they had been waiting to ambush you! You didn't do any research after the confrontation?! You didn't even studied the methods of the munima you were after?! You were facing a master of the scythe! Did you even know that before you left?!

—I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I just wanted to be strong like you— he pleaded.

—Then train and pull muscle, you weakling!

Cilo started to cry, apparently more hurt by that insult than by the blow.

—I'm not weak, I'm just a kid!

—A child who hides behind his guards! Your duty is to protect your team, not use them as a shield!

Fir scolded him for several minutes until her throat hurt from screaming. Then she left him in Ungrar's care and addressed the three humans.

—My brother has caused you a lot of trouble, I am truly sorry. I was also to blame, I admit I had suspicions, but I chose to believe him because he has been showing progress for some time now. I assure you he will be severely punished.

—It's all the same to us, as long as he doesn't cause any more trouble— Erica said.

—Behave yourself— Liliana grumbled between teeth— remember that they are the children of the First.

—Oh, no, please don't give special treatment for being crivias— asked Fir— it's true that I have resources and guards with me, but I must earn my status by my own methods. Same with my brother.

—So if he attacks us again, I can kick him in the face?— asked the brika.

—Erica, no!— Liliana pleaded.

Fir sighed.

—If you can get past Ungrar, yes, you may. I don't think Cilo will leave the matter there, but you have every right to try.

Erica started laughing like the bad guy in a movie. Then she looked at Cilo and gave him a menacing smile. The boy took a step back, but when he bumped into Ungrar he pretended to be unaffected.

—Your friend looks like he's going to faint at any moment— Fir told them.

Erica and Liliana looked at Arturo, he had a blank stare and was barely hanging from the brika's shoulders.

—Would you like to rest? I can take you to a hotel for the night— Fir offered— it's the last thing I can do to make it up to you.

—What?!— exclaimed the three of them.

—Are you really going to pay for a hotel for the three of us?!

—Of course, I was already staying in one here, anyway...— Fir fixed her hair, shyly— although if you'd rather avoid me, I understand perfectly. We can look for a different hotel.

The three humans looked at each other's faces.

—It's all the same to me— said Arturo.

—A hotel with the crivia — Liliana thought about it — Sure, why not?

—Yes, I'd love it!— Erica accepted.